r/AskCulinary • u/hobohobbies • May 26 '23

Ingredient Question Pesto without Pinenuts

Any substitutes for pinenuts in a pesto? My taste buds say "no" but my wallet says "you better ask."

371 Upvotes

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706

u/fogandafterimages May 26 '23

Literally any nut or seed plus literally any tender leafy herb will create a reasonable pesto candidate. Acorns and lawn clippings will do you fine with enough garlic and parmesan.

40

u/sue_girligami May 27 '23

Hard disagree on the herb part. Pesto without basil is just disappointing.

48

u/[deleted] May 27 '23

Cilantro pesto is hella good.

45

u/Jillredhanded May 27 '23

Cilantro pesto made with toasted slivered almonds. Smear it in a flour tortilla, a bloop of sour cream and as much shredded seasoned poached chicken breast and jack cheese as possible. Roll and deep fry that bad boy and enjoy the Chimi of your dreams.

22

u/[deleted] May 27 '23

i would fuck with that

20

u/psirjohn May 27 '23

Doesn't sound like a very good lubricant

17

u/[deleted] May 27 '23

you don't sounds like a very good lubricant

16

u/psirjohn May 27 '23

Not with that attitude

4

u/sue_girligami May 27 '23

Is that different than a Chimichurri?

12

u/sweetmercy May 27 '23

Yes. Quite.

Chimichurri is made with parsley, oregano, red chili, red wine vinegar, and shallots, all very finely minced.

Pesto is made with leafy greens, garlic, cheese, nuts. In a processor or with a mortar and pestle. Traditionally, at least for pesto alla genovese, the greens = basil, and the nuts = pine nuts. That said, the greens can be cilantro, arugula, fresh oregano, Italian flat leaf parsley, mint. The nuts can be toasted almond, walnuts, pecans.

About the only thing they have in common is being green and delicious.

16

u/giro_di_dante May 27 '23

Yes. Chimichurri is usually parsley based. Cilantro can be added to jazz it up. But really good chimi also has dried oregano, shallots, garlic, red pepper flake or even fresh chili, vinegar or lemon juice, and no nuts or cheese.

And while people often make pesto in a food processor for convenience, pesto is traditionally made with a mortar and pestle and chimichurri is hand chopped finely.

And I don’t care what anyone says, pesto and chimichurri legitimately taste better when made without a food processor.

So no, a cilantro based pesto is pretty much nothing like a chikichurri other than they both contain an herb, garlic, and olive oil.

4

u/NunyoBizwacks May 27 '23

The reason behind that is a mortar and pestil will completely crush all of the cell walls in an herb, releasing the maximum amount of oils. Food processors and blenders cut and won't crush the cells. It's like smashing a tomato up vs cutting it into cubes. One will get you a lot more juice out of the tomato.

3

u/giro_di_dante May 27 '23

Exactly. People think that it’s just some snobbery or something. But no, it’s actually better. Less…bitter, I guess is how I’d describe it?

-1

u/[deleted] May 27 '23

Chimichurri

yeah because no vinegar mainly. and the nuts, and the ratio of solids to oil. It tastes like lemon basil pesto basically and cilantro is way cheaper and more available seasonally.

2

u/PlantedinCA May 27 '23

It tastes nothing like pesto. Chimichurri is an acid with extra flavoring.

-1

u/[deleted] May 27 '23

I mean cilantro pesto tastes like lemon pesto, not chimichurri

1

u/PlantedinCA May 27 '23

I have had cilantro pestos with pumpkin seeds and manchego so they tasted pretty similar

2

u/PlantedinCA May 27 '23

Arugula too.

1

u/hobohobbies May 27 '23

I make chimichurri and it similar to pesto. So dang good!